Eva Carneiro has revealed she ‘found it hard to watch football for a year’ following her bitter exit from Chelsea and fall-out with Jose Mourinho.

The former club doctor at Stamford Bridge was publicly criticised by then boss Mourinho for treating Eden Hazard on the pitch during a match against Swansea on the first day of the 2015-16 season. The acrimony that followed ended with a settlement in her favour in the middle of an employment tribunal, where she claimed constructive dismissal.

Despite her legal victory, Carneiro said she felt ‘in the middle of a storm’ and unable to enjoy life. She remains ‘disillusioned’ with football.

Eva Carneiro has spoken out about her life after leaving Chelsea in bitter circumstances

‘If I am honest I found it hard to watch football for a year,’ she told L’Equipe. ‘The 2016 Champions League final (between Real Madrid and Atletico Madrid) was the only game I was able to sit and watch last year.

‘I dealt with the period as well as I could. It was a shock at a time I should have been happy because I was about to marry my husband, go on honeymoon and enjoy our new home. One day I came home and said “I have to resign”.’

Carneiro also warned against allowing medically unqualified coaches or managers being allowed to make decisions that could have a negative effect on a player’s health.

Carneiro fell out with Jose Mourinho (left) over her treatment of Eden Hazard in a match

Carneiro was awarded a settlement but says the case has impacted her view of football

‘Footballers cannot be modern gladiators, they cannot be fed to and eaten by lions in the name of entertainment at whatever cost to their life, their career and their future,’ she said.

Carneiro, 44, also revealed that she has had offers to return to football but that she remains reluctant following her experience at Chelsea.

‘I fiercely believed and passionately fought for the teams and managers I have worked for and this leads to the best work,’ she said.

‘But I am disillusioned that football does not seem to want to improve itself or learn from its mistakes.’